BIOGRAFY
Anty Pansera has worked on the field and on the papers for decades, in the fluid territory of research and proposition, on the border between theory and practice, between art, art critique and design.
Born as a scholar of figurative arts, she soon left her area of specialization, both in her everyday teaching, and in her approach to the landscape of industrial design, which must be investigated and interpreted with methodological and research criteria that are strongly anchored to scientific and historical tradition.
Thus Studio Pansera was born, working in the field of research, focusing particularly on methodological issues thanks to the constant collaboration with Mariateresa Chirico and a team of young scholars and planners. Studio Pansera, which also hosts the paper files of the Cesare Andreoni Archive, hosts a considerable photographic and bibliographic holding, regarding the themes of decorative and applied arts, industrial design and planning.
After the Parini Classical High School in Milan (her hometown), Anty Pansera attains her degree in the History of Art Criticism at the University of Milan. She has always had a strong interest and has extensively studied Applied and Decorative Arts (from the Biennali of Monza to the Triennale of Milan, on which she has published “Storia e cronaca della Triennale”, Longanesi, 1978) and Industrial Design (with Alfonso Grassi), the “Atlante del design italiano 1940-1980” (Fabbri Editore, 1980).
From thereon she has curated publications, exhibitions, festivals and conferences on these topics. With Laterza she has published “Il disegno del mobile italiano - dal 1946 a oggi” (1990) and “Storia del disegno industriale in Italia” (1993) and she has directed the Italian Designers book series with Gillo Dorfles for the same editor. She has dedicated various studies and essays on Futurism and the issues that this artistic movement raises on the relationship with design. She is also Scientific Director of the Cesare Andreoni Archive.
Alongside her research, she is also a consultant for the public sector (in 2000 she developed the project for a new section dedicated to “The ways of living” for the Applied Arts Collection of the Sforza Castle in Milan) and for corporations, for the organization of archives and company museums (Italtel, A. L. Colombo, Alessi, FiMaG- companies of the Guzzini Group).
From 2001 onwards, she analyses and registers the contribution of female artists, artisans and designers from Italy. In 2009, with Luisa Bocchietto, Loredana Sarti e Patrizia Scarzella, she founds the association “DcomeDesign”, of which she is President. The study of sports equipment brought her to plan and curate the event and exhibition, with Alfonso Grassi, entitled “Sport e Design, progettare la competizione” (Ivrea; Beijing and Toronto, 2009; Johannesburg, 2010).
Teaching has also strongly characterized her work, first teaching “History of Art” at the ISA of Monza, “History of Design” at the Polytechnic University of Milan (1996 – 2008) and at the Brera Academy (2000-2017). Because of her professional background she was President of the ISIA of Faenza from 2010 to 2016 and published the book “La formazione del designer in Italia. Una storia lunga più di un secolo” (Marsilio 2015).
She is a member of the steering committee of the Design History Foundation, from 2012 she is part of the Board of Directors of the Design Museum Foundation of the Triennale of Milan and is part of the Scientific Committee of the same institution. From 2009 she is a member of the Italian Association of Historians – A/I/S/Design.
She has also been a journalist since 1976. She is member of the board of “Design Issue”, the journal published by the association of design historians, and has written for various Italian newspapers such as “Il Giorno” (where she curated the first column on design in an Italian newspaper), “Il Sole 24 Ore”, “La Repubblica”, "Il Mattino" of Naples, and for cultural policy periodicals such as "Il Moderno" and for Italian and foreign journals in the sector.
She has also been part of the Drafting Committee of “L'Arca”, consultant for “Habitat Ufficio”, part of the Scientific Committee of “Keramicos” and of “L'artigianato”; she has also collaborated with “Dossier Habitat”, magazine on living and “Arredo Urbano”.